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For sale Very rare January 1984 Ibanez MC888 "bean" bass, made in Japan, original case, open to offers

Sold
$1,999.00
Strings
4
Status
This item has been sold and is no longer available!

Details

NEW EDIT: gave it a quick polish and added a few pictures to the bottom of the post. I have now knocked the price down by $400 because I really need the cash and Reverb users are wasting time I don't have anymore... Please do not hesitate to make an offer.

Apologies in advance for rushing this listing a bit, got a death in the family and I'm scrambling to sell a few unique instruments to pay for the expensive last-minute flights across the ocean.

This is a very rare 1984 Ibanez Musician MC888 "bean" bass, in dark stain. I believe these were only made in 1984 (please correct me if I am wrong) and the serial indicates it was manufactured in Japan in January of 1984, one of the first ones produced. I'm sure you know how these were all snapped up by bass superheros at the time (and precious since).

Neck-through-body, fantastically built - specs here MC888

I am posting this in a hurry and didn't have time to wax/shine it before taking the pictures - will be happy to update with better shots as we go along. It was used on the road a bit and has a few dings and chips in the clear coat, but nothing unusual for a well-loved 40yo instrument. It was passed on to me by a dear older friend who, when I said I would spend $100-200 bucks getting the few dings filled-in and buffed out, chuckled and told me that if I knew who put those dings there, I probably would leave them all in forever. Unfortunately he passed away shortly after and before we could finish the conversation, so maybe your sleuthing will come up with the answer to the celebrity owner mystery... I wouldn't know where to start with just the serial number and the alt serial from Draper's.

It's a gorgeous instrument, sounds fantastic, the model has an amazing pedigree and they don't make them any cooler than this these days, in my opinion... I just have to part with it because of necessity, not because I want to.

Comes with the original Ibanez case from 1984, vintagely-used on the outside but pristine on the inside. Will post new pictures in this thread after I am able to clean it up a bit later tonight.

I'm asking $1,999 or Best Offer, priced to sell quickly, open to all questions. I have gotten many offers for it over the years but I would rather sell it to someone who really knows what they are buying and who will appreciate it properly.

Let me know what you would like to know/see. Thank you - cheers!

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Comments

Ethix4

Supporting Member
Oct 26, 2022
528
1,272
Good luck in your situation, would hate to part with one this unique . Sweet axe.
 
Mar 6, 2024
5
17
Los Angeles CA
Good luck in your situation, would hate to part with one this unique . Sweet axe.

Hey, thanks a bunch for your message - it was quite nice to read at the end of a pretty horrible day. Much appreciated...
Truth be told, it will be put to better use by a serious bass player. I love having nice instruments around to noodle on, write music with, and just to have around when people visit and want to play, but I am not the best bassist (I play many instruments, most of them pretty poorly compared to others), and someone else will get even more joy out of it than I do. Fingers crossed! Thanks again.
 
Jan 20, 2023
207
222
51
Damn, Adam Clayton actually could make sense... I wish there was a way to know! Thanks for sharing :)

for sure! some pics of him playing one are definitely out there on the interwebs but would be hard to make the match unless you saw a good pic that included the wood grain pattern you could match
 
Mar 6, 2024
5
17
Los Angeles CA
A quick update: people on Reverb are wasting a lot of my time with back and forth and lowballing, most are only interested in buying a rare instrument to flip it, not in playing it. Please don't hesitate to make me an offer, as I really, really need it sold in the next few days. My loss is your gain? Thank you.
 

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Misophonic
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For Sale: Bass Guitars
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